Europe Solidaire Sans Frontières
1) We the representatives of civil society organizations of Pakistan appreciate the democratically elected government for reconvening Pakistan Development Forum (PDF) and welcome the national and international delegates. We assure our support to this process and believe that possible solution (...)
Minutes of Meeting Concerning Formation of Seraiki Social Forum (SSF) August 18, 2007 at SAP-PK Lahore.
Moderator: Mazhar Arif. On Stage: Mohammad Tahseen Fayyaz Baqir, Zahoor Dhareja, Amjid Nazir, Shaista Bukhari, Ume Kalsoom and G.M. Ghanjera.
60 renowned seraiki activists from all the (...)
Europe solidaire sans frontières (ESSF) participated in the World Social Forum in Karachi. The report which follows is not descriptive (number of seminars and so on.), but seeks to share some elements of analysis on this new experience and its significance - taking account of the fact that this (...)
Karachi,
Renowned author and activist Tariq Ali was a hit, particularly with young Pakistanis, at the Karachi World Social Forum, held March 24-29. Wherever he spoke, whether at the 5000-strong opening ceremony or at seminars on political Islam, globalisation and war, the attendance was huge. (...)
Independent voices can be heard in Pakistan, but non-governmental organizations are stifling genuine social movements, while allowing the president’s military regime to feel like it is actually modern.
While we were opening the World Social Forum (Asia) with virtuoso performances of sufi music, (...)
FOR Karachi, the World Social Forum was a big event. This is a city that has in recent years earned a bad name for itself for its lawlessness, crime and violence, where foreigners fear to tread because of dreaded bomb blasts. When it played host for five days to 20,000 people - 2,500 foreign (...)
The Polycentric World Social Forum was planned to be held simultaneously in Karachi, Pakistan, Caracas, Venezuela and Bamako, Mali, but Karachi had to be postponed following the disastrous October earthquake in northern Pakistan, while the other two went ahead. I’ve just returned home from this (...)
Contrary to what many people think, the World Social Forum was not an NGO-ized space for generating vague and foggy solutions that never get implemented. For most of its participants, it met with success, for its primary goal to provide an open space for socio-political movements and activism (...)
The six-day World Social Forum (WSF) in Karachi ended on a thoughtful note: Will the success of the event lead to a visible advancement of liberal democratic forces in Pakistan?
The simple answer would be: Yes, it can. However, the relationship of the WSF to people’s political movement is not (...)
The NGOs, social and political activists and the high level delegates who had gathered under the World Social Forum banner in Karachi, went home last week after indulging in a frenzy of activity for six days. This “open meeting place for reflective thinking, democratic debate of ideas, (...)
A radical movement, an alternative ideology, a space for free expression or a mere talkshop for the like-minded? What the World Social Forum really is and what it is not.
Karachiites were lucky to have the flavor of a ’hide park corner’ for a whole week during the recently concluded World Social (...)
Karachi World Social Forum ended yesterday with a closing rally addressed by mainly young activists from different countries. Over 35000 attended the unprecedented event in the history of Pakistan due the course of five days. Over 300 events attracted hundreds of activists from different walk (...)
Editorial
Visas for WSF delegates
ORGANIZERS of the World Social Forum have complained that the government is dragging its feet over issuing visas to thousands of delegates who plan to attend the forum being held in Karachi later this month. The organizers have a point when they say that (...)
KARACHI, March 24: The world is changing but a better, peaceful, prosperous and equitable world order is only possible if deprived, disadvantaged and progressive sections of society forge unity and strive for a viable alternative to the current world order that is both repressive and divisive. (...)
The third leg of the polycentric World Social Forum will take place in Karachi from March 24-29. The event originally planned like its counterparts in Venezuela and Mali had to be postponed following the devastating eathquake in Kashmir and Pakistan on October 8 last year.
The six day event, a (...)
KARACHI, Pakistan, Jan 20 (IPS) - Of the many disruptions caused by the Oct. 8 temblor, that killed 87,000 people and left 3.5 million homeless, one was the postponement of the Karachi chapter of this year’s polycentric World Social Forum (WSF).
As things stand, the sixth WSF is underway (...)
Dear friends A joint meeting of National Steering Committee (NSC) of Pakistan Social Forum and Organizing Committee (OC) of WSF 2006 Karachi was held on November 19, 2005 in Lahore. The meeting was attended by more than 100 members of both NSC and OC. The meeting took a comprehensive stock of (...)
A. Imperialism, militarization and armed conflicts in the region and peace movements
i. Peace Initiatives; India- Pakistan, Burma-Thailand, Palestine-Israel, Iraq, Iran-West + US, Afghanistan
ii. Imperialism, Wars, Resistance movement, Militancy, Weapons.
iii. State entrenched violence and (...)
One of the venues of the first ever polycentric World Social Forum will be Karachi. Caracas and Bamako will be the other two venues to host the Forum simultaneously between January 24 and 29, 2006. In Asia, Sri Lankan groups did not ask for it, Bangladesh initially proposed to host the forum (...)
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